NX, formerly known as "Unigraphics", is an advanced high-end CAD/CAM/CAE, which has been owned since 2007 by Siemens Digital Industries Software.[1][2] In 2000, Unigraphics purchased SDRC I-DEAS and began an effort to integrate aspects of both software packages into a single product which became Unigraphics NX or NX.
 | |
| Developer(s) | Siemens Digital Industries Software |
|---|---|
| Initial release | October 1973 |
| Stable release | 1847 Series - 1867 monthly / June 2019 |
| Operating system | Mac OS up to NX12, Unix-like (x64, partially), Windows (x64) |
| Available in | multi-language |
| Type | CAD/CAM/CAE/PLM |
| License | proprietary |
| Website | www |
It is used, among other tasks, for:
- Design (parametric and direct solid/surface modelling)
- Engineering analysis (static; dynamic; electro-magnetic; thermal, using the finite element method; and fluid, using the finite volume method).
- Manufacturing finished design by using included machining modules.
NX is a direct competitor to CATIA, Creo, and Autodesk Inventor.
History
1972:United Computing, Inc. releases UNIAPT, one of the world's first end-user CAM products.
1973: The company purchases the Automated Drafting and Machining (ADAM) software code from MCS in 1973. The code became a foundation for a product called UNI-GRAPHICS, later sold commercially as Unigraphics in 1975.
1976 McDonnell Douglas Corporation buys United Computing.
1983: UniSolids V1.0 is released, marking the industry's first true interactive Solid Modeling software offering.
1991:During a period of financial difficulties McDonnell Douglas Automation Company (McAuto) sells its commercial services organization, including the Unigraphics organization and product, to EDS which at that time is owned by GM.[3] Unigraphics becomes GM's corporate CAD system.
1992:Over 21,000 seats of Unigraphics are being used worldwide.[4]
1996:Unigraphics V11.0 is released with enhancements in Industrial Design and Modeling including Bridge Surface, Curvature Analysis for Curve and Surfaces, Face Blends, Variable Offset Surface, etc. In the area of Assembly Modeling the new capabilities include Component Filters, Faceted Representations, and Clearance Analysis between multiple Components. A fully integrated Spreadsheet linked to Feature-Based Modeling is also included..
2002 First release of the new "Next Generation" version of Unigraphics and I-DEAS, called NX, beginning the transition to bring the functionality and capabilities of both Unigraphics and I-DEAS together into a single consolidated product.
2007Introduction of Synchronous Technology in NX 5.[5][6]
2011Release of NX8 on October 17-2011
2013Release of NX9 (x64 only) on October 14-2013
Release history
| Name/Version | Version History Value | Release Date | License Service Version |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unigraphics | R1 | April 1978[7] | |
| Unigraphics | R2 | July 1978[7] | |
| Unigraphics | R3 | October 1978[7] | |
| Unigraphics | R4 | March 1979[7] | |
| Unigraphics | D1 | December 1979[7] | |
| Unigraphics | D2 | September 1980[8] | |
| Unigraphics | D3.0 | April 1982[8] | |
| Unigraphics | D4.0 | September 1982[8] | |
| Unigraphics II | 1.0 | August 1983[8] | |
| Unigraphics I | D5.0 | March 1984[8] | |
| Unigraphics II | 2.0 | March 1985[8] | |
| Unigraphics I | D6.0 | August 1985[8] | |
| Unigraphics II | 3.0 | November 1985[8] | |
| Unigraphics II | 4.0 | November 1986[9] | |
| Unigraphics II | 5.0 | October 1987[9] | |
| Unigraphics II | 6.0 | December 1988[9] | |
| Unigraphics II | 7.0 | December 1989[9] | v7.0 |
| Unigraphics | 8.0 | March 1991[10] | v8.0 |
| Unigraphics II | 9.0 | August 1992[10] | v9.0 |
| Unigraphics | 10.3 | June 1994[10] | v10.0 |
| Unigraphics | 11.0 | January 1996[10] | v11.0 |
| Unigraphics | 12.0 | January 1997[10] | v12.0 |
| Unigraphics | 13.0 | July 1997[10] | v13.0 |
| Unigraphics | 14 | 6/22/1998[11] | v14.0 |
| Unigraphics | 15.0 | November 1998[10] | v15.0 |
| Unigraphics | 16.0 | September 1999[10] | v16.0 |
| Unigraphics | 17.0 | October 2000[12] | v17.0 |
| Unigraphics | 18.0 | July 2001[12] | v18.0 |
| Unigraphics | NX | July 2002[12] | v19.0 |
| NX | 2 | v20.0 | |
| NX | 3 | v21.0 | |
| NX | 4 | v22.0 | |
| NX | 5 | 4/16/2007[13] | v23.0 |
| NX | 6 | 5/20/2008[14] | v24.0 |
| NX | 7 | 5/20/2010[15] | v25.0 |
| NX | 7.5 | v26.0 | |
| NX | 8 | 10/17/2011[16] | v27.0 |
| NX | 8.5 | v28.0 | |
| NX | 9 | 10/14/2013[17] | v29.0 |
| NX | 10 | 12/14/2014 | v30.0 |
| NX | 11 | 09/08/2016[18] | v31.0 |
| NX | 12 | 10/27/2017 | v32.0 |
| NX | 1847 | 1/18/2019[19] (NX Continuous Release Started) | v33.0 |
| NX | 1872 | 6/26/2019 | v34.0 |
| NX | 1899 | December 2019[20] | v35.0 |
| NX | 1926 | June 2020[21] | v36.0 |
| NX | 1953 | December 2020[22] | v37.0 |
| NX | 1980 | June 2021[23] | v38.0 |
| NX | 2007 | December 2021[24] | v39.0 |
| NX | 2206 | June 2022[25] | v40.0 |
| NX | 2212 | December 2022[26] | v41.0 |
| NX | 2306 | June 2023[27] | v2023.06 |
Key functions
- Computer-aided design (CAD) (Design)[28]
- Parametric solid modeling (feature-based and direct modeling[29])
- Freeform surface modelling, class A surfaces.
- Reverse engineering[30]
- Styling and computer-aided industrial design
- Product and manufacturing information (PMI)
- Reporting and analytics,[31] verification and validation[32]
- Knowledge reuse, including knowledge-based engineering
- Sheet metal design
- Assembly modelling[33] and digital mockup
- Routing for electrical wiring and mechanical piping
- Computer-aided engineering (CAE) (Simulation)
- Computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) (Manufacturing)[34]
- Numerical control (NC) programming
Supported operating systems and platforms
NX runs on Linux, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS.
Starting with version 1847, support for Windows versions prior to Windows 10 as well as for macOS was completely removed, and the GUI was removed from the Linux version.[19]
Architecture
NX uses Parasolid for its Geometric modeling kernel and D-Cubed as Associative engine for sketcher and assembly constraints as well as using JT (visualization format)[35] for lightweight data and Multi-CAD.
See also
References
Gallery
Cad crank
engine airflow simulation
External links
Media related to NX (Unigraphics) screenshots at Wikimedia Commons